Newsletter June 2013 Issue 14

Two Sundays in May

Early May was a busy time for the club with Bracken playing host to two local competitions on successive Sundays. Our own Absent Friends tournament took place on May 5th with visiting archers from Bournemouth, Lytchett and Canford joining club members in a friendly shoot in memory of all those archers who are no longer with us. After the traditional minute’s silence the competition, a Western Round overseen by judge Paul Burden, commenced in perfect conditions for archery, under blue skies with just a few puffs of fair weather cumulus and,

most importantly (for me at least), only a gentle, warm breeze. At the end of the day Jay Howarth of Canford won the Gents Recurve with Chris Grubb of Bournemouth second and our own Andy Fisher third. Eric Bell and Steve Pritchard also "nished in the top ten. Bracken’s only medal winner was Oren Anderson who took Gold in the Junior Boys Recurve Short Western category. A team from Bournemouth Archery Club took the Recurve team trophy with a score of 2870 with Canford second, scoring 2843 and Bracken third with a score of 2765. (Continued, with more photos, on centre pages.)

The shooting line during the Absent Friends Competition.

Since a few people have expressed an interest about how I got into coaching and what it entails I thought I’d collect a few thoughts for you.

Getting involved in coaching:I’m a bit of a bookworm, and during my

"rst couple of years shooting I chewed my way through books by Kisik Lee and Simon Needham among others, but it was a classic archer y book by Al Henderson called “ U n d e r s t a n d i n g W i n n i n g A r c h e r y ” (recommended to me by Andy) which got me interested in coaching. I started getting involved by volunteering to help on the beginners courses – these take a lot of organising and running, from all the admin work before hand in getting people enrolled, to setting up bows and targets (and putting it all away again), as well as all the coaching during the sessions. So having extra helping hands around is always useful, especially for the "rst couple of weeks before the beginners are pro"cient at setting up their own kit. Having helped out on a few courses, at "rst just helping with gear, but then coaching my own beginners, I was then offered level 1 coach’s training, sponsored by the club. It’s a decision I took seriously, as it’s a signi"cant investment for the club to pay for a coach’s training, and I wanted to be sure I could commit the time, both to the training, and to the courses. But I’d enjoyed the coaching I’d done so far, and the club desperately needed more coaches, so I went for it.

The Level 1 coaching Course:I was very impressed with the Archery GB

l e v e l 1 c o u r s e , t h e i n s t r u c t o r s w e r e knowledgeable and the course material was comprehensive and recently revised. The course comprised four Sundays of tuition and practical sessions, with some homework in between. There are several written tests and also a practical assessment which involves planning and delivering a coaching session under the beady gaze of the coach assessors. The course material covered lots of subjects including appropriate communication and feedback, safety checks on equipment, planning and conducting coaching sessions, shooting techniques, anatomy and warm-up and cool-down exercises.

One of the most interesting practical sessions revolved around getting an appreciation for the challenges faced by archers with disabilities: we used wobble-boards to simulate leg weakness, wheelchairs, and even used specially modi"ed goggles to simulate different types of visual impairment.

In between the course and assessment certain things have to be done, including a number of hours assisted practice at coaching, a child safety awareness course, and a CRB check. Paul Burden of Bowmen of Lytchett (familiar to many of you as the judge at the competitions we’ve hosted recently) kindly arranged for some of us from clubs who didn’t have beginners’ courses running at the right time to get some practice in coaching on one of their courses.

The Good bits:The best bit of coaching is seeing people

join the club after a successful beginners course

Steve’s Adventures in Coaching:

Here is Steve in full coaching mode on day one of the second beginners course this year.

and enjoying their archery. It’s also nice to know I’m helping the club out – the beginners courses are a key source of income for the club, as well as a source of new members.

The Bad bits: The only down side to coaching for me so far is that the time commitment is pretty big, and the main thing to consider if you’re thinking of giving coaching a try. Over the summer I’ll commit at least 30 hours to coaching beginner courses, plus ad hoc requests for coaching beginners 1:1 outside the main courses. Sunday courses aren’t too bad as I can shoot in the morning, but the evening courses practically mean a lost evening’s shooting.

The Hardest bit: What not to say. It’s possible to look at someone’s form and come up with a long list of what you think they’re doing wrong, or could improve. But pointing out everything that is not perfect with someone’s form or gear setup is just about the worst thing I could do as a coach - it will demoralise someone and really doesn’t leave them in a position where they’ve got realistic goals for improvement. It’s much better to focus on one key area for improvement and give that time to bed in before "xing the next problem. Of course, what can happen then is that another archer or coach sees what you haven’t "xed thinking you’ve missed it and j u m p s i n to “ h e l p”, b u t t h at ’s w h e re co-ordination between the coaches and senior archers needs to improve.

Next steps:Well… coaching is something I enjoy,

but not as much as shooting. I’d like to do the level 2 course sometime in order to be able to take beginners further into improving, but beyond that I think coaching is something I’ll look to develop further later on in my archery career – I think it would be a nice way to stay involved in the sport later on in life.

Want some coaching? As a level 1 coach my focus is on helping people take up the sport, and hopefully helping them develop during their "rst few months of shooting after joining the club. So if you’re new to shooting and have a problem, or just want to make sure that no bad habits are creeping in after the beginners course then feel free to talk

to me about it. For more experienced archers, your best bet is to speak to Adam (our coaching co-ordinator) who can point you in the right direction. For more general advice about gear, bow setup or tuning and the like then any of the coaching team or senior archers should be able to help. If you think you’ll need a decent chunk of a coach’s time, for instance in setting a bow up when you’ve got new limbs, say, or to do some bow tuning, please book in advance, it’s just polite - coaches need to shoot too!

Want to help out? If you think you’d like a taste of coaching, or just want to help out, then speak to Adam. Any help, particularly on the early parts of beginners courses, is always welcome.

Steve Pritchard

(continued from front page) The following Sunday it was Bracken’s turn to host the annual three way tournament between Bournemouth, Lytchett and Bracken for the Wessex Trophy, shot over a National Round and once again overseen by judge Paul Burden. The weather could not have been more different from the previous week; dull, overcast, chilly and with the constant threat of rain which, fortunately, only materialised shortly after the "nal arrows had been collected. It did however mean that the raffle and award ceremony were conducted with everyone huddled under the cover of the club’s gazebos. The Gents recurve Gold Medal was won by Chris Grubb of Bournemouth with Bracken’s Andy Fisher picking up the Silver Medal. There were good performances from other Bracken archers with four more "nishing in the top ten with Eric Bell 5th, Mick Smith 6th, Nick Kenworthy 7th and Steve Pritchard 8th and

with Neil Lambton and Kevin Edge "nishing only just outside the top ten. Chandler Kenworthy won the Junior Boys Recurve Medal and Oren Anderson won the Junior Boys Recurve Short National. Saskia Kenworthy won the Girls Junior Short National and Associate Member Vicky Burden won the Girls Junior Recurve Medal. The overall team trophy went to a team from Bournemouth consisting of Chris Grubb, Gregg Hyatt, Tina and John Honey. Both of these back to back tournaments were judged to be a great success by our visitors and this was due not only to the organisational skills of Adam Brown and Andy Fisher, but also to the other club members who assisted with tasks both great and small, and especially to Linda Harding for her stirling work on the refreshments, for which the club is extremely grateful.

AJB

Collection time at the Absent Friends (above) and (below) the winning team from Bournemouth with the trophy presented by

Lady Paramount Rosie Forward.

Jay Howarth of Canford Archery Club collecting the Gents Recurve Gold Medal from Rosie.

Left, the shooting line at the Wessex Tournament and below left, Chris Grubb receiving his Recurve Gold Medal from Lady Paramount Jo Anderson and below right, the winning team from Bournemouth Archery Club with the Wessex Trophy.

Book Review: With the opening of the new Mary Rose Museum in Portsmouth allowing us to see not only the ship but, for the "rst time, many of the artifacts recovered from the ship, including many Tudor Longbows, this seems an ideal time to mention a book that I have had for a couple of years now. Longbow, A Social and Military History by actor Robert Hardy was "rst written in 1976 but has been reprinted and revised over the years to re$ect the advances in knowledge gained from research by Hardy himself and others into the weapons recovered from the wreck. My own paperback copy is from the 4th edition but this new, revised 5th edition in hardback was published in August 2012. Over the years this book has achieved an enviable reputation as the classic work on the subject, not just of the weapon itself but also the lives, equipment and training of the soldiers that

used it. The book is well written, erudite and a joy to read. Whilst research continues it is difficult to describe any volume as the de"nitive work in a subject but this is as close as you are likely to get to de"nitive in the story of the Longbow. Thoroughly recommended. AJB

Published by Haynes, 244 pages,RRP £25 but available from Amazon for £16 with free delivery.

I did promise this report some time ago when a few of The Company went to Bournemouth for a talk on the subject. Here is a summary of that meeting. but the article also contains some of the ways I approach my sport. First of all, a question for you all, answers later in the article.

Please answer honestly. In all, adding up to a total of 100%, put beside each category what you think is important.

%MENTAL PRACTICE %SHOOTING PRACTICE %BOW TUNING _______ 100%

There is a book that I recommend to you all. UNDERSTANDING WINNING ARCHERY by AL HENDERSON. It is not expensive (£8.95 from Quicks) and answers a great deal as you read through. I read this book from cover to cover every time I start having any problems.

I do not want to go too far with my ideas, as I know there will be some proper coaching from the coaches as we go through this season, however, to continue; The mental game is made up in part by ;

Concentration (DIS-ASSOCIATION)Anxiety control (RELAXATION STRESSMental rehearsal (IMAGERY, OUTWARD & INWARD)Goal setting (THE PLANNING) In my bow box I keep a small notebook. In it I have written down every technical detail of my bow set up. Everytime I change something I write it down and date it, even if it is only a click on the pressure button. I also have a break- down of my shot sequence. Again, if I change anything, I write it down and date it. I have found if you don’t do this, you will forget. I have found this works both ways as it could well be your bow set up rather than your shooting that is at fault and visa versa. I practice being relaxed. Tell yourself to be relaxed; think positive, be positive. A poor shot is history. Do not worry about it; it’s too late, forget it, just do not do it again. Be positive. No negative talk, e.g. “That’s the sighters over with, its all down hill from now” Yes, it will be. Practice imagery:BURN THE GOLD; that is “look at the gold hard”. Run YOUR SHOT through your mind then just DO YOUR THING.Finally:Enjoy, Enjoy, Enjoy your sport. If you start to hate it - DO NOT DO IT!

Now the answer to the earlier question. MENTAL SKILL: U.S.A. REPORT FINDINGS 70% MENTAL PRACTICE 25% SHOOTING PRACTICE 5% BOW TUNING 100%

     There is as we all know a lot more to tuning these days especially when you buy something new to add to the bow or to use with it. Also when the bow acts as it should, mentally, you also feel better. What a sport! I do hope that some of this helps some of you. If you have any questions for me, please ask, other wise good shooting. ANDY FISHER

Mental Skills:

Andy demonstrating the mental approach to shooting

Eric wrote an excellent article on shooting the recurve bow in May 2013. This is the perfect way of shooting recurve for an ideally proportioned archer. However, if you are not ideally proportioned or are shooting a different type of bow the ideal method has to be adjusted. I will now discuss ways of shooting other bows, and why you have to adjust your methods. There are different types of competition where different rules apply. For instance there are target archery, "eld archery, clout shooting, distance shooting and longbow shoots. You must be careful not to contravene any of the rules when shooting. Some of my notes could do this in some competitions but not in others, so be very careful about the particular competition shooting rules.

Longbow: As the name suggests, these bows are generally the longest. They are also the most basic with no sights or arrow rest. Firstly, you have to ensure that your bow hand is in exactly the same position each time, so that the arrow is also in the same position. Also, the arrow nock must be in the same position on the string. If the arrow is too high (relative to the bow hand) the tail of the arrow will be $ung high on shooting and will not be stable. Even worse, if the arrow nock is too low it will not be stable and could well whip down onto your bow hand, which can be quite painful. Since there are no sights, you can only aim by instinct ( not at all easy) or by aiming the arrow point higher or lower. At one time in target archery, archers were allowed to stick a marker in the ground, short of the target, at which to aim the arrow point. I used to use a different anchor point on my face so that the arrow was aimed somewhere on or near the target at each distance. For instance, with one of my bows, I anchored on my cheek bone for 20 to 40 yards (adjusting the exact place at which the arrow point was aimed). I would then anchor on my top teeth for 50 to 60 yards. Finally, I would use the normal under the chin anchor for 80 to 100 yards. Another way of aiming is to look at the wood grain on the bow shaft and identify a particular position on the shaft for each different distance. This position can be placed on or next to the

gold ( or point of aim on the target). You could even mark the shaft. Although I am sure that medieval archers used every trick they could to improve their aim, many of these possibilities are not allowed in certain types of competition.

Recurve: Eric’s article showed the perfect way to shoot a recurve. You should only vary this if your proportions make it too difficult to shoot the ideal way. For instance, if you have a particularly short forearm, you would not be able to get the weight fully and correctly on your back. In this case you may have to anchor on the chin at the side of your face thus pulling the string an inch or two further back. If you have a short nose and/or protruding chin, you may not be able to place the string against your nose as well as your chin.

Compound: Compounds are usually considerably shorter than other types of bow. Therefore the string goes more sharply forward from the nock. Because of this (and because you normally look through a peep sight in the string which needs to be reasonably near the eye) you have to anchor on the side of your chin, rather than on the front of the chin. The other differences are that you look through a peep on the string to the sight which usually has a scope and bubble level, and that you use a release aid to hold the string instead of your "ngers. The peep ensures that the string is exactly in the same position, relative to your face, each time. However, you do have to adjust the position of the peep on the string to ensure that you are in a comfortable anchor when aiming. when I did a clout shoot with my compound, I repositioned the peep slightly higher on the string. This had the disadvantage of a slightly less positive anchor, but it meant I could aim normally at the target/pole rather than estimate its position. On the sight, the scope magni"es the target. You need to experiment to "nd the best magni"cation for yourself. This is altered by using different lenses with different powers of magni"cation. (continued overleaf)

Shooting Different Types of Bow:

(continued from overleaf)

ALL members are warmly invited to submit contributions for inclusion in the Newsletter. Items can be either e-mailed to arthur.budd@talktalk.net or handed directly to me.

The bubble, when properly centered, shows that the bow is being held upright. this is particularly valuable in "eld archery, where you are often shooting on the side of a hill. The release aid ensures (when used properly) that the string is released smoothly. It has to be used like the trigger of a gun. You DON’T yank or stab it. You place your "nger/thumb on it gently and then squeeze the whole hand gently.Finally: You can see how bows differ and how fascinating it is to shoot different types. Surprisingly you will also "nd that the extra

knowledge you obtain will improve your shooting. It is also a good idea (if you can) to try the different types of archery. Target archery improves the basic way of shooting, and you can analyse more easily what you are doing. Field archery helps you to improve your standing position, particularly if the shooting position is unusual (rising or falling land or the side of a hill). It will also teach you the amount the sight mark is likely to differ when shooting up or down hill.

John Howe

A Gentle Reminder; Dress Code: Competition judge Paul Burden would like to remind members that although it is acceptable to wear anything within reason and subject to safety constraints (e.g. no loose clothing or open toed shoes) whilst practicing at the club, it is a different matter when it comes to competitions. Most, if not all, competitions will state on their entry forms that they are being conducted under Dress Regulations in accordance with G.N.A.S. rule 307. The entry form for the FITA 70, which you can "nd on the club website, is one such example.

Although quite a complex regulation in respect of logos etc., the bottom line that Paul would like to draw to members attention is that Blue Denim, Olive Drab and Camou"age are NOT allowed to be worn when competing in tournaments. Obviously, the easiest way to avoid falling foul of the dress regulations is to wear club colours when competing in any competition, be it home or away. That is, a club shirt in black and red with black lower garment; trousers or skirt as appropriate.

AJB

2nd Annual FITA 70m, Sunday 28th July: Fast approaching is the third competition that Bracken will be hosting this year, the FITA 70. In fact this is a Double FITA 70, that is 6 dozen arrows in the morning and another 6 dozen in the afternoon. There will be other distances available for those archers who, for what ever reason, do not wish to shoot the full 70 metres. As can be imagined, with an early start this is going to be a long and tiring day for everyone involved, and for that reason what we really need is a massive effort on the part of ALL club members, new and old, to provide support and assistance, both on the day itself and also on the Saturday when the bulk of the "eld setting up will take place. There are many tasks that will need to be attended to on the day including help with the refreshments, selling raffle tickets and general

hospitality for our visitors plus, of course, clearing the "eld at day’s end and organising the drawing of the raffle and the medal ceremony. So, even if you are not shooting yourself, there will be plenty for you to do. And don’t think that because you may not have been to such an event before you won’t know what to do. There will be plenty of people on hand to tell you what needs doing and how to do it! We will also need help with donations of snacks and cake for the refreshments (especially cake for Adam!) and prizes for the raffle. This is a major event in the club calendar, which it is hoped will achieve Record status in the near future, but this will only happen with your help. So, clear your diary for the weekend of the 27th/28th July and let us ALL make this shoot something to remember!

AJB